After years of rumors, Disney’s 1991 cult hit The Rocketeer is finally getting a sequel!
Well, they’re calling it a sequel-reboot? Whatever that means.
The Hollywood Reporter has announced that Disney now has a Rocketeer sequel in development–titled The Rocketeers–which will be written by Max Winkler (son of Henry Winkler) and Matt Spicer. It will be produced by Brigham Taylor (2016’s The Jungle Book) and Blake Griffin and Ryan Kalil of the L.A. Clippers and Carolina Panthers, respectively.
Here’s the summary given:
The new take keeps the story in a period setting and offers a fresh view on the characters. Set six years after the original Rocketeer and after Secord has vanished while fighting the Nazis, an unlikely new hero emerges: a young African–American female pilot, who takes up the mantle of Rocketeer in an attempt to stop an ambitious and corrupt rocket scientist from stealing jet-pack technology in what could prove to be a turning point in the Cold War.
Not only is it exciting to see a Rocketeer sequel finally step into its development phase, but word on the lead character is extremely heartening; while the latest blockbusters have been stepping up bit by bit in terms of representation, finding a science fiction or fantasy vehicle for a woman of color (especially if produced in the U.S.) has been practically unheard of. With any luck, The Rocketeers could prove to be the start of a sea change for cinema, and usher in a whole new era of action heroes.
